Philip Embiricos, a scion of one of Greece's most legendary shipping families and former head of Bimco, passed away earlier this month.
A fixture on the international shipping conference circuit for his outspoken and insightful views, Embiricos died peacefully in Paris on 20 November, the Baltic Exchange said on its website.
"His passion for the industry will be remembered as will his smile when he challenged those less informed offering their unqualified opinions," the Baltic statement said.
Philip Alexander Embiricos-Coumoundouros, as was his full name, became a Baltic member in 1979. He also was a director of his family's shipbroking business in the UK. A traditional Greek owner, Embiricos was often critical of the new ways shipping companies used to get financed.
"We have competition to traditional shipowners of people who really think in a totally different way," he told a shipping conference in 2014, expressing dismay at the way flotations of public companies were often conducted, how private equity muscled its way into the business and how ship orders were placed.
'Put it in the box'
"[They say] look at the returns, we put it in the box, we put it into the computer, look at the rate of return — fantastic, let's raise money, we'll make commissions, we'll get management fees etc, etc — that’s the way it goes".
Embiricos used to lead shipowning and ship management companies Andros Maritime and Aeolos Management.
A qualified naval architect, he also was a knowledgeable authority on the works of the Panama Canal, to the point that he wrote a book about the subject in 2006.
He served as chairman of Bimco between 2007 and 2009. Embiricos also was for several years on the executive committee of Intertanko, as well as on the Lloyd's Register technical committee.
According to the Baltic, he is survived by his wife Nitzia, his daughters Nitzia Logothetis and Adriana Embiricos-Coumoundouros, and his grandchildren.
